Mansfield’s Joe Cox carries the ball against Oliver Ames in the first half. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)

NORTH EASTON, Mass. – With a chance to secure a home playoff game, Mansfield was able to execute in all facets of the game in a convincing 41-6 win over Oliver Ames on Saturday. It was the first meeting between the two teams since 2011.

After having to punt on the opening drive, the Hornets scored a touchdown on the next three series, and then three of the next five to get the win and in all likelihood, lock up the fourth seed in the Division 1A South.

“The big thing is to keep playing at a high level,” Mansfield head coach Mike Redding said. “We played well last week. We wanted to get out of this healthy and get the home – I think we did everything we wanted to. I think we secured a home game, we’ll see how the math works out but I think we have some confidence and momentum going into the playoffs.

“I think we’ll have everyone back and it looks good for Brian Lynch next week so we become a very tough out going into the playoffs. We’re healthy, and with our full group we’re pretty good on both sides of the ball.”

Both the Hornets and the Tigers had to punt on the opening drive but Mansfield made quick work of its second offensive series. A 15 yard pass from Anthony DeGirolamo (6/11, 100 yards) to Hunter Ferreira (two catches, 31 yards) preceded an 18 yard run from Nick Graham (five carries, 47 yards).

On the third play of the drive, DeGirolamo found Mike Shannon up the middle for a 33 yard touchdown. A high snap forced DeGirolamo to attempt a pass for a two-point conversion but the catch was deemed out of bounds, giving Mansfield a 6-0 lead.

Oliver Ames’ next five drives resulted in a turnover on downs and four punts.

On Mansfield’s third drive, Joe Cox (77 yards) busted free for a 28 yard gain on the first play. On the second play, Graham went nearly untouched through the right side for a 22 yard score and a 13-0 lead.

The Hornets used their longest drive of the game, spanning the end of the first quarter and beginning of the second quarter to get their third touchdown. Mansfield used seven plays to cover 76 yards to expand its advantage over the Tigers. Highlighted by DeGirolamo completions to Kristian Conner (13 yards) and Ferreira (16 yards) and a 26 yard rush from Will Garvin, Mansfield pushed the lead to 20-0.

DeGirolamo used an option on a jet sweep to take it in himself for a 12 yard score.

Mansfield added two more touchdowns before the first half came to a close. Cox rattled off a 49 yard touchdown run with 3:35 left in the second quarter and then DeGirolamo found sophomore Aidan Sacco for a 14 yard score with just over 30 seconds to play in the half.

Oliver Ames had its best drive of the game to open the second half. Sophomore Anthony Berksza (163 all-purpose yards) got things started with a 54 yard kickoff return and then hauled in a 32 yard pass from Kyle Gagliardi to help the Tigers move the ball up the field. Liston Funai punched it in from a yard out for OA’s touchdown and Berksza fought his way in for a two-point conversion.

The Hornets’ final touchdown came in the third quarter with Sacco running it in from 12 yards out.

“Even at 5-1, I think we’re the four seed. If Milton beats Wellesley we could be the three seed so still a lot of division and math to go,” Redding said. Wellesley ended up beating Milton later in the day. “But we’re in, and I think we’re home. We could get Marshfield or B-R, which is a tough first round game. But it’s the playoffs, you’re not going to have any easy ones. I like the way we’re playing on both sides of the ball and our special teams are good. We just have to make it happen next Friday night.”

Mansfield, which is 5-2 overall, will likely host Marshfield next Friday based on The Boston Herald’s ratings. Official seeds and matchups will be announced by the MIAA on Sunday. Oliver Ames (2-5) will miss out on the playoffs and will find out their next opponents on Sunday as well.

Outlook:
Attleboro has developed as a program under head coach Mike Strachan and continues to be one of the teams contend with for the Kelley-Rex title even with a number of new faces on the roster heading into this fall. Even with the loss of standout lineman Kyle Murphy, the Bombardiers will have size on both sides of the ball and use that to control the line of scrimmage.

Offensively, senior quarterback Tyler McGovern returns after an injury knocked him out of the starting lineup midway through last season. He gives Attleboro the chance to look downfield, while junior Cam Furtado stepped in at QB last year and proved to be a dynamic athlete who opened up defenses with his legs.

The offense will flow behind senior lineman Andrew Gingras. At 6’5 and 285 pounds, Gingras will be counted on to open holes for senior running back Sam Corrado and also provide a stout run stopper on defense. Corrado will also provide help at linebacker and on special teams.

“The 2016 Bombardiers are a young team with many players that will be competing for time both offensively and defensively,” said Strachan, who is confident that despite the youth on the roster that Attleboro will be a team to watch this fall.

Outlook:
There is a lot of energy in the Franklin camp over the past couple of weeks, as new head coach Eian Bain takes over from longtime coach Brad Sidwell and looks to give the Panthers a boost after three straight one-win seasons in the Kelley-Rex division. Bain said that he expects there to be a “different vibe” from the team this season.

The Panthers have a lot of experience coming back this season starting in the backfield with quarterbacks Jake Noviello (junior) and Alex Cregg (senior), who both saw action last season. Whoever is starting will have a host of experienced receivers to look for with Eddie Scannapieco, Packie Watson, and Joey Blasie on the outside and 6’5 Connor Peterson at tight end. The bulk of the offense will run through senior tailback Jacob Wolowacki, who emerged last year as a go-to back with three touchdown runs.

Defensively, Franklin has a lot of talent returning in the back seven led by senior safety Jake Lyons, who will also help out as a running back on offense. The secondary also includes Kyle McInery and Nick Gordon with Justin O’Callahan, Bruce Johnson and Khyler Colella manning the linebacker positions. Brad Jarosz will add size to the defensive end position.

Bain said, “It has been an uptempo, high energy camp in Franklin. Players have answered the bell every step of the way to learn both new offensive and defensive systems. While still a work in progress, the team is making strides every day.”

Outlook:
King Philip got off to a rough start last season, but managed to turn things around with a dramatic victory at Mansfield and won three out of four to get back into the postseason. The Warriors could be inconsistent on the offensive side of the ball in 2015, but with experienced skill position players coming back KP could be ready to challenge for the league title.

It begins in the backfield with senior quarterback John DeLuca, who is ready for his third year as the starter and is one of the toughest signal callers in the league. This season, DeLuca will have a number of weapons to help put points on the board. Senior running back Sean Garrity will add speed to the edge for the Warriors, while his classmate Giovanni Fernandez is a power back to add another dimension inside the red zone. Senior Michael Mello returns to add experience to the receiving corps.

The strength of the Warriors under head coach Brian Lee has been defense and line play and this season should be no different. Seniors Paul Macrina, Michael Sullivan, and Daniel Loewen will be major factors on both sides of the ball. Senior Alex Olsen has the potential to be the defensive MVP this year taking over the role of graduated linebacker Cory Lombardo. Fernandez and fellow senior Brett Mazur will add strength to the linebacker position as well.

Outlook:
Mansfield’s defense held teams to 15 or fewer points in all but two games last year. Only St. John’s Prep and Marshfield (two teams ranked in the top five in the state when they faced the Hornets) were able to get any rhythm going offensively against the Hornets. Despite strength on that side of the ball, Mansfield struggled to find consistency on offense and ended up one point short of a share of the Kelley-Rex division title.

This season, the Hornets offense could be a huge strength with a number of playmakers returning. Senior quarterback Anthony DeGirolamo will be the starter for the second season in a row and will have a strong backfield around him with senior Brian Lynch as the power back and Nick Graham giving Mansfield speed to the edges. DeGirolamo will be able to aim for junior Hunter Ferreira, who has emerged as one of the top receivers in the league, and senior Ben Budwey.

On defense, the front seven will once again be a strong feature for the Hornets. A.J. Gibbs, Colin Gibbons, and Andrew Ducharme add size and strength on both sides of the ball, while senior linebacker Travis Sjoberg is a leader with the potential for hitting triple digits in tackles this fall. Senior placekicker Diogo DeSousa is a weapon in special teams after being recognized at kicking camps over the summer.

“We are a senior team (30 seniors),” said Mansfield head coach Mike Redding, “but we have some very talented juniors and sophomores that will help us win this year and give us some great depth”

Outlook:
Oliver Ames head coach Mike Holland is entering his second season in charge of the Tigers and will also be managing the program’s first fall in the Kelley-Rex division. In the last three games of 2015, OA beat Norwell and North Quincy and battled Sharon in a three-point loss on Thanksgiving Day, building momentum heading into this season.

The Tigers are excited about the potential of the offense with two quarterbacks who can make plays with their feet or their arms. Kyle Gagliardi and Travis Campbell are in the mix to be the starter and Holland expressed confidence in both of his seniors. OA also has a strong running game with senior Liston Funai leading the way for a group of backs that provide the Tigers with toughness and the ability to find open space.

OA has a lot of experience returning on the defensive side of the ball. Jack Mills will be a force on both the offensive and defensive line, while Jay Fruci and Leandro Moro will provide a spark from the linebacker spot. The secondary has also been boosted by Noah Fitzgerald and Michael Mulrean. “[We] have an excellent group of seniors and younger guys,” said Holland. “Kids are working hard and putting in strong efforts in all phases.”

Outlook:
The Tigers have a new coaching staff this fall, but it will be one that is very familiar to fans of the Hockomock League. Brad Sidwell moved to Taunton after 20 years in charge of the Franklin program. Sidwell comes into his new position with plenty of experience in the league and an experienced roster that has 14 returning starters, but the Tigers enter 2016 without a Kelley-Rex win since 2012.

There is optimism in the camp this preseason because of the large number of returning players and because of the size that Taunton boasts on the front line. Senior Zakim Harrow checks in at 6’2 and 335 pounds, his classmate Sylvester English is 6’1 and 290 pounds and junior Paul Carrao is 6’3 and 270 pounds. Those players will open holes on both sides of the ball and create space for playmakers such as senior linebacker Mike Fernandez and senior running back Brevan Walker.

There is a battle for the quarterback position this season. Junior Collin Hunter threw 11 touchdown passes last fall but sophomore Noah Leonard has impressed in camp and could snag the starting spot for Friday night’s opener at New Bedford. Whoever is under center will have a couple of strong targets to aim for with senior receivers Adam McLaughlin and Sam Krajewski and senior tight end Andrew Wellington all back.

“We’re just looking for improvement everyday,” Sidwell said. “Hopefully with a little confidence we can get off to a good start.”

Foxboro’s Mark Clagg rushed for one touchdown and threw another to lead the Warriors. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com Stock Photo)By Lance Reynolds, HockomockSports.com Contributor
FOXBORO, Mass. – Facing a 12-0 deficit at halftime, Foxboro never gave up and their resilience paid off in the Warriors’ first Thanksgiving win over Mansfield in three years with a stunning 13-12 victory.
Trailing by six with less than six minutes left in the game, the Warrior offense was still having a tough time waking up against Mansfield’s stifling defense. A turnover on downs halted Foxboro’s previous drive and the Hornets maintained momentum. However, a two play, 37 yard drive changed the game’s entirety.
After forcing the Hornets to punt on their own 13, the Warriors took over at Mansfield’s 37 yard line. On the second play of the drive, junior quarterback Mark Clagg tossed the ball over two Hornets’ defenders and into the hands of junior Jamaine Few for a 37 yard score to tie the game. A converted extra point from John Cronin put Foxboro ahead 13-12 with 4:50 left, the eventual game final score.
“We’ve had some pretty good football games with them these last four to five years. This is still one of the few traditions that are left that are sacred – Foxboro and Mansfield,” Warrior head coach Jack Martinelli said. “It’s important to the two communities, not only the players now but for the players three or four generations ago. It’s not very easy to beat a Mike Redding team. He’s one of the best coaches around.”
Foxboro’s defense preserved the win as they forced Mansfield to punt and turnover the ball on downs on the Hornets’ two ensuing drives following the go-ahead score. Mansfield failed to get past their own 40.
“It was a tale of two halves,” Martinelli said. “They won the first half and we won the second half.”
“They didn’t change a lot scheme wise but I’m sure [Martinelli] gave them a heck of a half-time speech to get them moving. I think the big thing was just not moving the chains and we gave them too many chances,” Mansfield head coach Mike Redding said. “The field position flipped where we are punting out of our own 15 and them starting on our 40, and you just can’t do that. Sooner or later, it will catch up to you, and certainly, penalties hurt.”
At the start of the second half, Foxboro and Mansfield exchanged turnovers and found little offensive happenings. After the Hornets forced the Warriors to punt, quarterback Anthony DeGirolamo threw an interception on a deflected pass three plays into the drive setting Foxboro up on Mansfield’s 28.
It seemed as though momentum shifted to the Warriors, however, Clagg’s 15 yard pass attempt in the end zone was picked off by Mansfield’s Colin Eutsay. Unfortunately for the Hornets, Foxboro’s defense made sure that Mansfield wouldn’t make the most of the turnover. A 20 yard rush by sophomore Joe Cox set the Hornets on their own 40 and DeGirolamo rocketed a 30 yard pass to a leaping Hunter Ferreira putting the ball at Foxboro’s 30.
An offensive holding decimated the drive and three plays later, Mansfield failed to convert on 4th and 13 to turn the ball back over to Foxboro. The Warriors then went on an eight play, 67 yard drive resulting in their first points of the game.
A roughing the passer penalty cost the Hornets 15 yards which put the ball at their 37, and Clagg capped off the drive on a 19 yard quarterback keeper, trimming Mansfield’s deficit to 12-6.
“That’s what this senior group is all about. Even in the games when we didn’t come out on top, I never saw an ounce of quit in any one of them. I’m so proud of them,” Martinelli said. “To go out as Hock champs in the Davenport with an 8-3 record, their legacy was definitely left out on the field today.
“It’s a bittersweet day. It’s a great day to play football as everyone is here but the sadness is that I have to say goodbye to 35 kids that meant the world to me for four years. They meant a lot to each other. It will never be duplicated again for them.”
The Hornets opened the game’s scoring at the 1:54 mark in the first quarter of play. Filling in for injured Brian Lynch, Cox found plenty of running room in the first half. The sophomore running back tallied 96 yards on 10 rushes. Cox delivered 45 yards on Mansfield’s first scoring drive highlighted by a 29 yard run which put the ball at Foxboro’s 28.
Five plays later, DeGirolamo struck a 16 yard pass to an open Wisnieski in the end-zone to give the Hornets the 6-0 lead with 1:54 left in the quarter.
Mansfield’s second scoring drive lasted 11 plays, going 74 yards. On a 4th and four at their own 24 yard line, Cox found enough running room for a 30 yard gain putting the ball at the Warrior 36. The Hornets found themselves at the Foxboro one yard line six plays later and Cox followed with a one yard carry to increase the Hornet lead to 12-0.
Although this was Mansfield’s first Thanksgiving loss to Foxboro in the last three years, Redding knows how important this rivalry is even when there’s nothing to be played for besides pride and town spirit.
“It’s a great rivalry but they just made one or two more plays than we did. We hadn’t missed an extra point all year and that comes back to bite you later in the game. Whatever people say about Thanksgiving rivalries not being important, they don’t know what it means to be from Mansfield,” Redding said. “This rivalry is alive and well. It’s one of the best around and it was just a great game. I give them a lot of credit, they came to play in the second half and they made enough plays to win.”
Foxboro ends the season 8-3 while Mansfield finishes 5-6.

Mansfield senior Connor Finerty rushes against Natick in the first half. (Ryan Lanigan/HockomockSports.com)By Ryan Lanigan, Editor-in-Chief
MANSFIELD, Mass. – In a one score game, Mansfield had the chance to score right before the half and then get the ball to start the second and pull away from Natick.
But a failed fourth down conversion from inside the Natick 10 yard line and then an interception in the end zone to start the second half saw those plans come to an end quickly.
Luckily, Mansfield’s defense was nearly impenetrable and didn’t allow the Redhawks much success offensively at all in a 29-13 win in the first round of the MIAA D2 South playoffs.
With the Hornets holding onto a 15-6 lead after the interception in the end zone, Mansfield’s defense quickly took the momentum back by forcing a quick three and out. The Hornets offense then took the ensuing drive 56 yards on seven plays, capped by a three yard touchdown from senior Nick Graham and Mansfield went up 22-7 with just 16 seconds left in the third quarter.
“At half we thought we were playing well but we were letting them hang around,” Mansfield head coach Mike Redding said. “It probably could have been 22-0 but they hit the flag route and all of a sudden we have a ball game at halftime. We had [Brian] Lynch on the sideline but Nick [Graham] did a good job coming in running in the second half, Joe Cox for a sophomore ran great, Connor ran great. I thought when we came back out we assumed control of the game and the big thing was getting that next score to get it back to 22 instead of letting them score and all of a sudden its a one point game.
“I think we’re growing up and maturing, we lost a little bit of momentum but we took it right back and I thought dominated the second half and played really good playoff football. And we live for another day.”
Mansfield had an ideal start to the game with the defense allowing Natick to run just six plays before forcing a punt. The offense used the ground game to get the ball moving, getting 46 yards on four of its first five plays. Four plays later, senior Connor Finerty (12 carries, 97 yards) took the toss left and followed big blocks from Anthony Keefe and and Josh Schafer to punch it in from two yards out.
Junior quarterback Anthony DeGirolamo (9/17, 158 yards) hit sophomore Hunter Ferreira over the middle for the two point conversion to make it 8-0 with 4:17 left in the opening quarter.
The Hornets continued to dominate on defense, allowing just one yard on Natick’s next three plays to get the ball back off a punt. DeGirolamo linked up with Ferreira for 20 yards and then again for 41 yards off a flea flicker. Three plays later, junior Brian Lynch went straight up the middle for a three yard score to make it 15-0 less than a minute into the second quarter.
“We were purposely trying to get Anthony going,” Redding said. “Next week we can’t line up against Marshfield and run the ball 50 times. We’re going to have to be some run, some play action, some first down throws or they’ll just be all over us in the box. He’s been throwing well and the one pick, they just got a little pressure and Hunter got thrown off on the count and didn’t get off on the ball so it was just a bad combination. I think Anthony’s come a long way and we have confidence he can throw and Hunter’s tough to cover.”
A sack from Finerty on third down forced Natick into a punt but a penalty and a fumble halted Mansfield’s next series.
The Redhawks had their best offensive possession of the game. After a rush for a loss, Natick used play action to get nearly half of their total yards for the whole game. Quarterback Christian D’Antonio (2/6, 84 yards) hit Chuck Jacobson on the left side and the senior sprinted his way for a 78 yard touchdown. A pair of penalties pushed Natick’s extra point attempt back 10 yards and Mansfield was able to block it. Dan Redznak picked it up and returned it all the way but a block in the back erased those two points.
“Since the Prep game, we’ve been really good on defense,” Redding said. “The one touchdown it looked like the kid was coming in to block, our corner came up on run and he did a good job on play action. We haven’t made many of those mistakes. Tonight I thought we played great defense, we just didn’t force any turnovers. But we didn’t have to because we were forcing three and outs and getting the ball back on offense. I think we’re playing our best football the last month.”
Mansfield’s final touchdown came when sophomore Joe Cox lunged to the pylon on the right sideline for a three yard touchdown, capping a 10 play, 69 yard drive to make it 29-6.
Natick added a touchdown with 20 seconds left against Mansfield’s second defense.
The Hornets’ starting defense allowed just three first downs to Natick, none of which came in the second half.
Mansfield (5-3) has a tall task now as they will travel to #1 Marshfield, widely considering the top team in the entire state.
“The good news is that we’re moving on, the bad news is that you have to go to Marshfield and play the number one team in the state,” Redding said. “But hey, we’re the underdog, we have nothing to lose. We’re playing good football. Last year it got away from us a little early, we just have to hang in there and get to the half with a chance to win and who knows in high school football what can happen.
“We have to bring out A+ game next week and try to work a miracle down in Marshfield.”

Kyle Gaumond (28) knocks the pass away from Hunter Ferreira (3) on fourth down to preserve a 14-13 win for North Attleboro and clinch the outright Kelley-Rex Division title. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

By Josh Perry, Managing Editor

MANSFIELD, Mass. – Mansfield coach Mike Redding has North Attleboro roots. Although he has been in charge of the Hornets for over 25 years and bleeds green, he took a moment after Friday night’s installment of this fierce rivalry to go to the Rocketeers celebrating at Alumni Field and congratulate them on the league title and urge them to bring home the Div. 3 state title.

It was a classy move by the Mansfield coach at the end of another emotional matchup between longtime rivals and perennial title challengers that North Attleboro won 14-13 to clinch the Kelley-Rex title outright and potentially the No. 1 seed in Div. 3 Southwest.

“This is great high school football,” said Redding. “It was a slugfest, two great teams, two great defenses, yards were hard to come by but both teams did enough to put themselves in position to win.”

The win gives North Attleboro its first league title since 2011 and its first outright Hockomock title since 2008. Once again, as has been the case all season, it was the Rocketeers defense that came up with the plays to win the game.

Leading by just a point with time winding down in the fourth quarter, North punted. Mansfield took over at its own 37 with less than five minutes remaining.

The Hornets got to the Rocketeers 33 and threw incomplete on first down. On second and 10, North dialed up a blitz and Bobby Mylod shot the gap to stuff Brian Lynch for a six-yard loss. On third down, the Rocketeers came again and sacked Anthony DeGirolamo for a seven-yard loss back to the 46. On fourth down, Kyle Gaumond leapt and swiped the ball out of the hands of Hunter Ferreira to end the drive.

North Attleboro ran out the clock and celebrated the victory.

“What we were trying to do is just get pressure on the quarterback,” said North coach Don Johnson. “I thought they had guys that they could throw to in the passing game…We were worried about it the whole game.”

“Defense has been doing it for us all year,” he added with a smile. “I’d just like the offense to score a couple more and make it a little easier for us.”

The Rocketeers offense looked great at the start of the game. Against a Mansfield defense that has been solid all season, North took the opening kickoff and marched 67 yards on 14 plays to take the lead.

Nick Morrison (12 carries, 68 yards) was big on the drive with six rushes, including a crucial fourth down and one gain of seven yards near midfield. Sophomore quarterback Chad Peterson showed off his arm hitting Davon Andrade for 18 yards and then snuck a shovel pass to Mylod on fourth and one from the four for the go-ahead score.

North Attleboro would not get another first down until its second possession of the third quarter.

Johnson said, “I think they frustrated us a little on offense. We had some blown assignments that we haven’t had in a few weeks, but I think that had a lot to do with their scheme over there.”

Mansfield was not able to get much going offensively but got a little spark right before the half. Ben Budwey’s punt return set the Hornets up at the North 37. DeGirolamo (7-11, 165 yards) hit Ferreira for 18 yards and then, following a four-yard loss, hit him again for another 10.

The Hornets had to settle for a 23-yard Diogo DeSousa field goal but were on the board and went into the break down 7-3.

To start the third quarter, DeGirolamo was strip sacked by Thomas Reynolds and Thomas Kummer jumped on the loose ball at the Hornets 37. But the Mansfield defense forced a turnover on downs, helped in part by Joe Bukuras’ tackle in the flat on Nick Dean for a four-yard loss on third and one.

The Hornets offense took advantage of the momentum swing and drove 71 yards on eight plays to take Mansfield’s first lead. DeGirolamo and Ferreira (six catches, 164 yards) hooked up for a 32-yard completion into North territory and then combined again on a 12-yard touchdown pass to the front pylon that put Mansfield ahead 10-7.

“He made some great passes,” said Redding of DeGirolamo. “Hunter is a great athlete and we tried to get him the ball tonight.”

“The offense is coming together. We just need to find a way to get to 21-24 and with our defense we’re going to win games.”

The lead was short-lived, as North Attleboro showed its resiliency to bounce right back. Peterson hit Ridge Olsen on the far side of the field for 14 yards and Nick Rajotte got 11, before Morrison broke free down the North sideline sprinting past his cheering teammates and the Hornets defense for a 39-yard score.

“We had the momentum,” said Redding, “and if we get one stop there and get the ball back with the lead, I think we win it. But, they’re a championship team, they answered, and they scored.”

Mansfield was not done. After a Connor Flynn sack pushed the Hornets back to third and 21 from their own 27, DeGirolamo and Ferreira connected on a 64-yard pass (taking advantage of a slip by the defensive back) down to the North nine. Again, the Hornets had to settle for a field goal and trailed 14-13 with 7:58 left.

Redding explained, “We thought we outplayed them in the second half and probably needed to score on the drive before, but we didn’t want to come up empty and thought that if we got a field goal and got the ball back that we felt good about driving.”

“Tonight we were just one drive away.”

Mylod, Gaumond, and the North defense did enough to stymie the Hornets on their final drive. When a personal foul flag was thrown for a late hit out of bounds on Mansfield with 1:30 left, the game was won and so was the title.

“I felt this team got over the hump and gained that confidence,” said Johnson. “This week in practice I had that feeling that everyone knew what they were doing for the first time. They entered the game with a lot of confidence.”

Even in defeat, Redding felt that this game had plenty of positives for the Hornets with the Div. 2 playoffs looming. He said, “We get a second life next week; this isn’t the end of the season. If we play like we did tonight, then we can make a run.”

He shook hands with the media and walked over to the North Attleboro players. As Mansfield made its way to the locker room, turning its back on the loss and focusing on next week, the Rocketeers stayed on the field taking a couple of moments to savor the win for a few more moments before moving forward.

Josh Perry can be contacted at JoshPerry@hockomocksports.com and followed on Twitter at @Josh_Perry10.

By Ryan Lanigan, Editor-in-Chief
MANSFIELD, Mass. – The story of the day was turnovers.
And the good news for Mansfield is that they won that battle against Taunton. The Hornets forced five of them, four interceptions and one fumble, and turned them into a 32-14 win over the Tigers on Saturday afternoon.
The weird thing though was the fact that Mansfield was only able to get 3 points from the five turnovers. Meanwhile, Taunton turned both of their interceptions into touchdowns.
“The plus side, our defense the last three weeks has been great, but the thing we haven’t done is get turnovers,” Mansfield head coach Mike Redding said. “Today we had four interceptions, we finally forced turnovers. The negative is we didn’t take advantage of them as much as we should have.
“We tend to have a penalty at the wrong time or a turnover at the wrong time.”
Mansfield’s offense was able to score at the right times though. After the teams traded punts to start the game, the Hornets needed just four plays to cover 41 yards to find the end zone. The first two plays even went for negative yardage but junior quarterback connected with Ben Budwey for 29 yards and sophomore Joe Cox took the next play 15 yards into the end zone. Diogo DeSousa’s extra point made it 7-0 with 5:38 left in the opening quarter.
After two more punts, the Hornets were able to get their first turnover of the day when Mansfield’s Ben Wisnieski intercepted Jared Taje’s pass near midfield and raced all the way to the 16 yard line. The momentum swing didn’t last long though as on the first play, DeGirolamo was intercepted in the end zone by Carlos Borrero.
Taunton was about to turn its first takeaway into eight points, driving 80 yards on 11 plays. Taje connected with junior Adam McLaughlin twice for a total of 48 yards and then hit Tanner Costa over the middle for 21 yards on third down. Taje tried to link up with McLaughlin in the end zone but a defensive pass interference call put the ball inside the five yard line. Damion Theodule was able to punch it in from two yards out while Costa rushed in the two point conversion. Taunton took an 8-7 lead with 5:54 left in the second quarter.
Although Mansfield couldn’t capitalize on their first takeaway, they were able to respond to Taunton’s touchdown drive. The Hornets used 10 plays to go 59 yards before regaining the lead.
Without leading rushers Brian Lynch and Connor Finerty playing, Nick Graham (10 carries, 72 yards), Connor Driscoll and Cox (14 carries, 76 yards) all moved the ball up the field on the ground. DeGirolamo went back to the air and hit Budwey right on the one yard line. On the next play, Graham found a hole and punched it in. Driscoll’s two point rush gave Mansfield a 15-8 lead with just 35 seconds in the half.
“We still have a long way to go on [offense],” Redding said. “It’s a good win though. Without Finerty, Lynch and Garvin, we had three of our top five backs out so any win in the league is good with those guys out.”
The Tigers attempted to get something going before the end of the half but Wisnieski was there again for an interception. Mansfield’s offense moved some but were forced to attempt a 39 yard field that was short as time expired in the first half.
Driscoll put an end to Taunton’s opening drive of the second half, picking Taje off on first down. Mansfield’s offense also stalled though, going four and out and were forced to punt. But that was fine as the Hornets’ defense again came up with a stop.
Mansfield’s ensuing drive got a boost to start when Taunton was flagged for fair catch interference. DeGirolamo hit sophomore Hunter Ferreira on first down for 20 yards and two plays later, Graham just raced through the defense for a 12 yard score to make it 22-8 with 4:13 left in the third.
The Tigers fumbled just two plays into their next drive and for the first – and only – time in the game, Mansfield was able to turn a takeaway into points. Diogo DeSousa hit a 24 yard field goal to extend Mansfield’s lead to 25-8 shortly before the final quarter.
“When you lose the turnover battle it keeps your defense out there and they control the clock,” Taunton head coach Chris Greding said. “The thing about Mansfield is they are so well coached and they don’t make many mistakes. Our boys knew that but we’re very young and made some mistakes. We told them they won’t make mistakes. We had to play a near perfect game. I’m proud of our effort but you can’t make those mistakes against Mansfield.”
Two plays into the next series, Joe Bukuras came away with Mansfield’s fourth interception on the game but DeGirolamo was intercepted by McLaughlin in the end zone for a touchback.
Greding inserted sophomore Collin Hunter in at quarterback on the Tigers’ next drive and was rewarded. Hunter connected with McLaughlin for six yards and then hit Michael Fernandez for 22 more yards. A short completion to McLaughlin was once against followed by a completion to Fernandez for a first down. The next to passes went to McLaughlin for 34 total yards.
Two plays later, Theodule got into the end zone from a yard out to cut the deficit 25-14 with six minutes to play. On the drive, Hunter went 6/6 for 78 yards. The sophomore finished 11/15 for 140 yards in the game.
“Collin has really progressed over the last six weeks,” Greding said, also noting the impressive play by McLaughin at receiver. “Each week he’s gotten better and better. As a staff we’re very confident putting him in if need be and he did very well.”
Mansfield capped the scoring with just over four minutes to play when Graham raced in for his third touchdown of the day, this one a 29 yard rush.
The Hornets (3-2, 2-1) will look to pick up their third league win next week when they travel to Franklin. Taunton (0-5, 0-3) will try to get into the win column when they take a trip to Community Field to take on North Attleboro.Ryan Lanigan can be contacted at RyanLanigan@hockomocksports.com and followed on Twitter at @R_Lanigan.

KP coach Brian Lee gives his team a fiery speech following the Warriors 15-7 victory over Mansfield on Friday night. (Josh Perry/HockomockSports.com)

By Josh Perry, Managing Editor

WRENTHAM, Mass. – King Philip took over at its own 28 yard line with 4:59 remaining in a tied game. The Warriors, still searching for their first win of the season, had only six first downs in the game and just two since halftime.

Despite having little to no success offensively for nearly 40 minutes, KP marched 72 yards on 13 plays and with just two seconds left on the clock junior fullback Alex Olsen punched it in from a yard out on fourth and goal. John DeLuca added a two-point conversion and the Warriors emerged with a 15-7 victory over Mansfield on the new (and soaked) turf at Macktaz Field.

“So proud of them,” said KP coach Brian Lee. “You have to be opportunistic and when we had a chance the kids made plays.”

He added, “We had a very good week of practice; we felt very confident coming in. We were confident that if we could get lined up, which isn’t always easy, that we’d be alright.”

The drive started, as would be expected from the Warriors, on the ground. Two carries from junior Giovanni Fernandez (15 carries, 73 yards) pushed KP to the 41. Then KP caught Mansfield with a perfectly executed screen to Sean Garrity for 17 yards into Hornets territory.

The drive nearly ended three plays later when Fernandez had the ball pop out on a third down run, but KP managed to recover. On fourth down, DeLuca (6-15, 76 yards) hit R.J. McCarthy on a slant to just get past the marker for a first down. On the next play, DeLuca looked downfield for Leo Munafo, who somehow pulled the ball down from behind his head for a 24-yard completion.

“Leo catching it and it looked like the [David] Tyree catch but we’ll take it,” said Lee with a giant grin. “When they needed to make plays, they did.”

Two DeLuca keepers later and KP was at the two yard line. Olsen got one yard closer on third down and the teams let the clock run all the way down to just eight seconds before the Warriors called timeout and decided on one last play.

“You come down and you don’t want to just leave it out there,” exolained Lee about not going for a field goal. “There’s a lot of things…could have a bobbled snap or something like that. So, if we could pound it in that’s what we wanted to do, but certainly I thought of a field goal there.”

He joked, “I wasn’t going to throw it there, that’s for sure.”

Olsen got across the line for the touchdown that sent the KP sidelines into hysterics. A Mansfield penalty after the play pushed the Warriors closer, so they went for two and DeLuca added the conversion on a keeper.

The two teams combined for seven first downs and eight punts in an opening half dominated by the defenses. Connor Finerty and Nick Martin were everywhere for the Hornets to plug the gaps and stop the Warriors running game, while Joe Bukuras broke up several attempts to get the ball out to Munafo.

The young KP defense, with four sophomores seeing regular playing time, counted on seniors Cory Lombardo and Michael Riggs to stop Mansfield’s backs from getting to the edge. KP held Brian Lynch to 33 yards on nine carries and Nick Graham to 25 yards on seven carries.

It would be those two players that would combine to get the Hornets on the board in the second quarter, but it took a trick play to open up the Warriors. Lynch took a pitch to the right and stopped to look downfield where he found his classmate Graham streaking up the sideline for a 40-yard touchdown.

The score stayed the same as the half entered its final minute, but with 43 seconds left Riggs sacked Mansfield quarterback Anthony DeGirolamo and forced a fumble that was recovered by Fernandez at the Hornets 15.

KP took advantage of the short field. After a short run, DeLuca hit Munafo for 13 yards down to the Mansfield one and on the next play Fernandez burst through the middle to tie the game at 7-7.

The game went back and forth with winning field position in the windy, rainy conditions seeming to be the primary goal of both offenses. Mansfield gained the upper hand in the fourth quarter with KP pinned back several times, but could not turn territorial advantage into points.

In a close game, all it takes is one drive and that is exactly what KP put together on Friday.

“We have a very young team and we’re taking some time getting them back in it,” said Lee. “It’s tough when you’re used to having some success and you’re 0-3 and it gets harder to sell that hard work, but they’ve bought in.”

Lee was asked if he could remember the last time that KP had beaten Mansfield in back-to-back years. He laughed and responded, “I don’t know. I have no idea.”

“That program is unbelievable. We have so much respect for them and for Mike and what they do year-in, year-out and to go back-to-back…I can remember back in the day that I never thought it could happen.”

Franklin @ North Attleboro – Postponed to 10/3 at 4:00Boys Soccer
North Attleboro, 0 @ Attleboro, 3 – Final – Zach Rodrigues scored once in the first half and then again in the second half to pace the Bombardiers over rival North. Junior Coca also scored a first half goal for Attleboro.

Foxboro @ Oliver Ames – Postponed to TBA

Franklin, 2 @ King Philip, 0 – Final – Hatim Brahimi put the visitors in front off an assist from Brian Czuba and Franklin took a 1-0 lead into the break. Senior Nick Parent then iced the game with a late goal in the second half off an assist from senior Austin Kent.

Taunton, 1 @ Mansfield, 4 – Final – Five minutes into the game, sophomore Sean Lanzillo put the hosts on the board off an assist from Jack Rielly. Just over 15 minutes later, senior Jared Miller doubled the lead for the Hornets off an assist from Charlie Rogers to take a 2-0 lead into the break. Five minutes into the second half, Lanzillo set up Rogers for Mansfield’s third goal and just 10 mintues later Brendan Sullivan finished off a pass from Jareme DiLoranzo to make it 4-0. Austin Botelho scored a late goal for Taunton.

Milford @ Stoughton – Postponed to TBAGirls Soccer
North Attleboro, 5 @ Attleboro, 1 – Final – Sophomore Haley Guertin and senior Hana Caster linked up three times for the Rocketeers to get a big win on the road over rival Attleboro. Caster set up Guertin for North Attleboro’s first and third goals while Guertin set up Caster for the Rocketeers’ fourth goal. Leah Jette scored North Attleboro’s second goal off an assist from Felicity Monfils and Caster added her second on a breakaway. Paige Medeiors scored Attleboro’s goal.

Taunton, 0 @ Mansfield, 2 – Final – Jackie Carchedi had a goal and an assist for the Hornets. Jen Kemp had the second goal and Emily Gaumond made four saves to record her fifth shutout of the season.

Stoughton, 0 @ Milford, 2 – Final – Katie Brown and Kristen Franzini each scored for Milford and Maggie Boyle had her fourth assist of the season. Stoughton goalie Marissa Williams made 12 saves in her first game back from injury. Stoughton head coach Tara Daniels said Samantha Tullis, Sarah Quattrucci, and Sarah Widrow kept Stoughton’s back field strong.Volleyball
North Attleboro, 3 @ Attleboro, 0 – Final
Oliver Ames, 3 @ Foxboro, 2 – Final – Oliver Ames picked up its third straight win with a 25-20, 20-25, 22-25, 25-17, 15-9 win on the road. Bridget McCarthy led Oliver Ames with 48 assists and Emma Petrillo controlled the offense with 22 kills.

Franklin, 3 @ King Philip, 1 – Final – The Panthers picked up a key Kelley-Rex win with scores of 28-26, 26-24, 19-25, 25-21. Dayna McCue had 30 digs and four aces, Aubrie Kutil and Beth Neal each had 10 kills while Kutil added an ace and Neal had a pair of aces and blocks and 13 assists. Franklin Head coach Kate Horsmann said Caroline Maguire had a huge role defensively at the net with four blocks and three kills. For King Philip, Josie Rowean led the team in attacks and had six service points in game one, Gwen Uyrus added seven service points in game two, Emma Lopez had eight service points in game three, and Amanda Loewen had five digs.

Taunton, 3 @ Mansfield, 2 – Final – In a back and forth affair, Taunton snapped its three game skid with a 11-25, 29-27, 25-20, 16-25, 15-12 win. Tatum Speicher wa the catalyst for the offense with 39 assists, six digs and three kills. Molly Sullivan had 29 serve receives and 16 digs while Meghan Navarro solidified the back row with 15 digs and three aces. Mansfield sophomore Meg Hill had 13 hills, Juliana Newell added eight kills and Jess Haradon had 17 digs.